Scelus Sceleris
by VGenesis
Summary: A sequel to the Harry Potter series. Lily Luna Potter is about to start Hogwarts and everyone has already started predicting her house, her friends and her future. However, Lily has a few surprises in store...
1. Prologue

Lily was lying on her stomach in the shrubbery at the outer recesses of the play area. None of the other three-year-olds had dared to venture into the long grass since Janie Williams had sworn she had seen it moving by itself when there hadn't been a wind.

Turning to her best friend, Lily smiled a rare smile. "I thought you weren't coming today." Her friend jerked his head in the direction of the other children, "I still don't understand why you aren't like the others. They're scared of me. I tried to talk to another little girl who looks a lot like you but she ran away screaming."

Lily's smile vanished and she clenched her small fists. "It isn't fair. You've never hurt them. You wouldn't hurt them. But they treat you worse than Tommy Heckler." Tommy Heckler was a boy who broke everyone's toys and seemed to wear fear like a cloak.

Her friend tilted his head very slightly to the side. Lily sighed, "I don't see why no one does anything. I don't understand it at all." She now squeezed her eyes shut, "I wish I was bigger. I wish I had power. The power to make people do things right."

Suddenly there was a scream. Sally the snitch was pointing at Lily's friend and screaming at the top of her lungs. "Stop it!" Shrieked Lily, panicking. But Sally just kept on screaming. Lily looked around for her only friend but he had dissolved into the grass and was nowhere to be seen.

Lily felt tears prick her eyes. He was the only one at this place who cared about things which actually mattered. The only one who didn't spend his days obsessing over things of absolutely no significance – such as whether there was a different Father Christmas for each country or whether he was actually one person who travelled all over the world in one night.

It all happened very fast. Her depression at her ridiculously immature classmates, her fear that she may never see her friend again, her anger at Sally for scaring him away all combined and it was as if she needed to manifest her feelings or explode. Grabbing a large stick from the ground, she took a menacing step towards Sally and struck her over the head. Hard.


	2. The Inevitable Invitation

Looking around her, Lily breathed a sigh of relief, she wasn't being followed. Carefully, with a philosophy book in one hand and a thermos of tea in the other, Lily began to climb her favourite yew tree. Once she had reached her favourite branch, one from which she had a good view of the whole graveyard, she opened her philosophy book and began reading with her expression that of mingled concentration and manic excitement. _F__iat iustitia et pereat mundus._One day she would change the world. One day she would bring about justice.

Reaching the end of the chapter, Lily felt her mind drift to that wonderful age yet to come. She would go down in history. However, as exciting as that particular prospect sounded, it was the difference she would make that she dwelt on.

People wouldn't judge others without cause, she would make sure of that. People would rally to listen to her and she would finally be able to make a difference.

Suddenly, her sharp ears picked up a sound. Slamming her book shut, she quickly scanned the graveyard and saw a small figure manoeuvring around the graves and heading straight for her tree. Sliding deeper into the foliage, Lily tried to make herself as small as possible.

"Lily. I know you're there." Lily sighed a breath of relief. Her father was the one member of her family she could relate to. Her brother James had been the bane of her existence for as long as she could remember. With his practical jokes and inane comments, he drove her insane. She treated him with a sort of contempt that one shows a small animal unworthy of attention.

Albus was just as annoying as James but in a different way. Although he didn't seem to make it his aim in life to irritate her, his beliefs and opinions made her want to shake him till his teeth rattled. He was unbelievably naïve. He believed the world was black and white. Good and evil. And there was always a neat solution to a problem. Generally Lily and Albus avoided each other like the plague.

And then there was her mum. Everyone always expected them to get along, being the two girls in the family, however, it was the very opposite. They simply spoke different languages. They seemed to get along on the surface but Lily always felt as though there was a sort of divide between them. She just had to work out what it was.

Finally there was her dad. The famous Harry Potter. Ever since she was a little girl she had begged to hear his stories and devoured each and every word. She lived for the moments when he would let something slip. Like how to get into the Chamber of Secrets. Those were possibly some of the most valuable moments of her existence. Things she could use.

Maybe it was that she had inherited many of his qualities. His determination, his ambition and his sense of justice. She smiled her rare smile at him now, "How did you know where I would be?"

Harry smiled back at his only daughter, "You've been coming her since you were a little girl, sitting in that perch of yours, reading till your eyes hurt. I know I'm away a lot but I'll always be your father first and an auror second."

Lily sighed, "I suppose you want to take us all to Diagon Alley now." Harry looked infinitely confused, "James and Albus loved going to Diagon Alley to collect their things. You'll get to buy a wand, remember. To say nothing of the fact that we still have to choose your birthday present."

It was the 31st August, Lily's birthday. However, as the two boys had always chosen this day to mention one more thing they had to purchase for Hogwarts before they boarded the Hogwarts Express the next day, the family tended to celebrate Lily's birthday on the 28th August.

Lily frowned, "I am looking forward to buying my wand and my cauldron and everything, I just don't want it to be ruined by _them_." Harry cocked his head slightly. He had always found Lily's relationship with her brothers confusing.

The relationship between James and Albus was fiery and best and outright violent at worst but he always understood that it was standard sibling rivalry. However, Lily seemed to be estranged from the family, just like Percy had been during a dark period of Weasley family history. He didn't really understand it. However, until he could find a way to fix it, he would certainly do what he could to limit their hostility.

"Tell you what. We'll all go to Diagon Alley together," Lily looked as though she was about to interrupt, "but" continued Harry, "when we get there Ginny will take the boys to buy their things and we'll tackle that list of yours."

Lily smiled. That didn't sound too bad. She could handle the journey from Godric's Hollow to Diagon Alley with her brothers. Just.


	3. Old Acquaintances and New Friends

Having separated from most of her family, Lily was finally able to relax. "So, where to first?" asked her father. Lily consulted the list and felt a sort of warmth flow from the list in her hand. "Robes."

Whilst waiting in Madame Malkin's for her to finish with another customer, Lily examined her reflection in the mirror and frowned. She hadn't been fortunate enough to inherit her mother's fiery red hair, nor had she inherited her father's vivid green eyes. Her eyes were a much darker brown than her mother's, almost black, and were set in a small, heart-shaped face.

Her pale skin contrasted almost shockingly with her jet black hair. Like her father's, it had a tendency to behave very badly and required tedious amounts of Sleekeazy's Hair Potion on a daily basis to maintain the smooth curtain of hair that fell past her shoulders.

Just add the fact that her nose was slightly crooked (she had broken it when falling out a window on Halloween when James had petrified her with one of his idiotic practical jokes) and that she was vertically challenged and there you had it. The full, unflattering picture of Lily Luna Potter.

After what seemed like an age, Lily had been measured and they were just gathering their things when Lily felt cold eyes piercing her back. Snapping round, she found herself face to face with Draco Malfoy accompanied by a small boy. The older Malfoy was looking at her with undisguised contempt whilst the younger one was trying and failing to hide his curiosity. He wasn't the only one.

Lily was examining Malfoy's son with interest. He was like a badly drawn picture of his father. He had the same small pointed face only his eyes were deep blue instead of pale grey. The boy was sporting an identical hairstyle but his hair was dishwater blonde instead of white blonde like his father.

Harry cleared his throat, "So, I assume this is Lucifer." Draco nodded curtly. Relations between the two had been strained ever since the Battle of Hogwarts. Harry tried his best to be polite despite the fact that he and Draco had been enemies during their Hogwarts days whilst Draco seemed constantly in pain as he thought of numerous insults but the memory of Harry saving his life forced him to swallow them.

"Well…er…I think we'll be leaving now. Come on, Lily." After one last look at Lucifer, Lily followed her father's hasty exit from the shop. "Ok then" continued Harry, looking much more relaxed then he had been inside the shop, "Let's continue."

Two hours later Harry and Lily were enjoying a much deserved ice-cream when Harry brought up the subject that Lily had been eagerly awaiting. "Well, we seem to have covered the list. Now we just have to find you a birthday present."

Lily leaned forward eagerly as her father continued, "Now, as I'm sure you'll want to send regular updates home I think an owl would make a perfect gift." Lily tried to hide her disappointment.

She'd never really liked owls. For some strange reason they made her want to snap and they always stayed away from her. Over the years her parents clearly thought she had gotten over her dislike of owls when in fact she had simply learnt to conceal it.

Lily scolded herself mentally, she was lucky to even be getting a present. Having heard Harry's "Dursley stories" hundreds of times from various sources, she knew a present was a wonderful thing that should never be taken for granted.

On the way to the Owl Emporium something beautiful caught her eye. It was pure white with two huge black eyes. Looking closer she couldn't help but gasp at how delicate it looked, its scales woven together in a seamless never-ending pattern.

"Hello" she breathed. The small snake was about a foot long and opened its eyes wide in surprise, "Hello to you too" it hissed.

Lily looked around quickly but fortunately no one had seen. She had struggled to keep her special talent a secret, even though she knew her parents would be perfectly accepting of it. In fact, she knew exactly what they would say, "Don't worry, Lily, there have been plenty of Parselmouths who were good and noble and you'll definitely be one of them." For some reason that upset her.

Catching up with her dad they entered the owl emporium together and this move was accompanied by a great deal of swarking and flapping with nearly every owl trying to put as much space between them and the girl who had just entered the shop.

Looking thoroughly irritated, a raged looking man dashed out from the back. "How many times have I told you? No animals in the shop!"

Harry looked slightly irritated, "Actually I was just bringing my daughter in to choose an owl but if you'd rather we leave then we'll get going now."

Lily smiled to herself as the man in front of her did a double take and, as per usual, his eyes did the standard dart to her father's forward to witness the legendary lightning bolt scar. Whilst Harry was embarrassed by the attention he still received, Lily adored it. One day, people would be doing that to her.

"I'm so terribly sorry, Mr Potter, sir. Please forgive me. It's just…people don't look at the sign….and I have to keep telling them…."

Harry smiled politely, "No harm done. Now, Lily, time to choose your owl." Lily had a decision to make. Did she tell her dad about the snake and risk him finding out or did she meekly accept the owl? Making a move towards the nearest owl, the panicked hooting made up her mind for her. She wouldn't make a poor owl suffer.

"Actually dad, there was something else I was hoping to get for my birthday…" Harry expressed a look of thinly veiled surprise. "Ok, um…where might we find this something else?"

Nervously, Lily approached the pet shop which held the snake and watched as her dad's eyes went automatically towards the little grey kittens huddled in one of the corners. "Ah, I see!" For some reason unbeknownst to her, Lily was still reluctant to express her desire to befriend the snake.

Lily fixed her eyes on the kittens. "Do you remember that talk you gave me last month about independence and responsibility? Well, for my birthday present I would like to be able to select, purchase and care for a pet of my choosing. I would like this pet to be completely my responsibility without any interference from anyone. Not only would this help me hone my organisational skills, in that I have to organise times to feed it and care for it, it would also improve my dedication and sense of responsibility."

Harry looked impressed. And why shouldn't he be? Lily had just demonstrated a level of eloquence and persuasion that he hadn't heard for a very long time. In fact, when was the last time he heard such gripping persuasive skills? Harry tried to remember…

Lily held her breath, waiting and hoping for the response she wanted. Her father seemed deep in thought and she knew it was at these times he wanted to be left alone to mull over what he had been told. However, after five minutes had passed and he still hadn't given a response, Lily felt the need to remind him of her presence.

"Oh, yeh, sure. Here's five Galleons, a kitten won't cost you more than that. Go buy one and you can keep the change." Already scheming how to get the snake out without her dad realising it wasn't in fact a kitten, Lily entered the shop.

Walking up to the counter confidently, Lily put on her most persuasive voice. "I would like to purchase the white snake in the window for my father, one Harry Potter. He sent me to collect it for him as he has a very special use for it. He believes that you will offer a reasonable price." The man at the counter looked nervous.

"You do understand that the creature in the window is a Black Eyed Leucistic Ball Python? They normally cost 200 Galleons. I can't just give them away ."

Lily looked at the man calmly. There was no way her father would believe a kitten set her back 200 Galleons. "Of course I understand that you couldn't give such a creature away to just _anyone_. But you do appreciate that we are talking about the man who vanquished Voldermort? May I inquire as to your blood status?"

The man behind the counter looked horrified. Not only had this girl mentioned the name of You-Know-Who, she had asked a question that no one had asked him since You-Know-Who's downfall. "Erm, well…I'm…you see…er…."

Lily smiled charmingly, "You do know that if you are Muggle-born then my father saved your life? Surely you wouldn't charge the man who saved your life 200 Galleons to purchase something he needs to help capture more wizards like Voldemort?"

The man behind the counter was now eying the exits anxiously, wishing he could escape from this increasingly uncomfortable conversation. Feeling his confidence vanish he caved in to the little girl in front of him. "You can have him…tell your father…I appreciate all that he's done and support him completely."

A few minutes later, Lily emerged from the shop carrying a cage with a blanket thrown it, "So he won't get scared" announced Lily to her rather bemused family who had suddenly appeared outside the shop."

"Dear" started Ginny, "I really don't think that's necessary. And I'm sure we all would like a look at this new pet of yours."

Lily looked at her unruly brothers who seemed completely engrossed in a debate about Quidditch teams, something Lily couldn't care less about. Thinking carefully, she put on her innocent face, "Couldn't we just let him sleep? The man in the shop said that he'll need a lot of rest for a few weeks and that we should try not to wake him. The blanket helps keep him warm."

Ginny sighed, "Very well. But I want a thorough examination of him later." Lily beamed.


	4. Many Meetings

Lily held her breath as she heard her mum entered her bedroom, "Now where has that girl got to?" muttered Ginny. Lily could clearly envision the idiosyncratic look of irritation which would have accompanied that question. She heard her mum walk around her perfectly organised room, everything she needed for tomorrow morning was packed neatly in her trunk. "And where is that kitten of hers?" Lily grinned, the so-called "kitten" was currently wrapped around her waist. With a sigh of exasperation, Ginny left the room.

After waiting for a few moments to ascertain that the coast was clear, Lily climbed carefully back into her room. Most people felt sorry for her as, being the third child, her room resembled a broom cupboard (although she could never say this aloud as her father would proceed to bombard her with stories of when he was forced to live in an actual broom cupboard). However, unbeknownst to most people, she adored her room.

Not only was the bottom of her cupboard removable, thus providing her with a secret compartment, there was a tree right outside her room which led directly into the alleyway that ran alongside their house. Not only could she use it to escape the house altogether, if she heard someone coming she could simply open the window, climb halfway down and wait for them to leave. It was a fantastic escape mechanism.

Looking at the clock, Lily saw it was almost midnight. She should really be getting to sleep but she had much too much on her mind to be tired. She had a decision to make. Gryffindor or Slytherin? Although she knew that houses had produced exceptional witches and wizards, she had no doubt that her entire family expected another Gryffindor. However…she hated the way Gryffindors treated Slytherins. Gryffindor had won the house cup for more than twenty years and she abhorred the way they looked down on other houses. It wasn't always consciously done but that didn't change anything. It was still painful to watch.

Then again, in order to change things she needed to succeed and surely being in Gryffindor would give her the greatest chance of success? Also, being a Gryffindor would enable her to change things from the inside. She could convert fellow Gryffindors and they might even listen to what she said. Nevertheless, was she simply trying to take the easy option? Simply doing what her parents wanted so she could keep the peace her father had certainly earned? Closing her eyes, she decided to talk to as many people as possible on the train and resolved to make an informed decision by the time she reached Hogwarts.

The next morning dawned dark and stormy. Thunder seemed to shake the house to its foundations and Lily longed to be in her tree. She knew it was dangerous but she loved the way adrenaline coursed through her veins when she was amidst the thunder and lightning. She loved the way the rain would drench her in seconds and the wind would try and blow her from her perch. She loved to watch the gathering darkness and listen to the howling wind, imagining voices calling to her from the graves.

Checking the hallway was empty, Lily tiptoed to the bathroom. Opening the bathroom cabinet, she pulled out a tub of Vaseline. A few minutes later, Lily emerged from the bathroom transformed. Her eyes were puffy, there were tear streaks on her face and her hair was a mess. Walking with looking down the stairs, she collided head-on with her father. "Come on, Lily, get a move….wait, what's wrong?" Lily cursed internally. She was hoping for her mother or Albus. Even James would be better than her dad. He would be the most difficult to fool. However, she had to do it as there was no way they were going to let her go without seeing the "kitten" at least once.

Aware of his eyes on her, Lily appeared to wipe her face inconspicuously. "N-nothing." She refused to meet her father's eyes. Harry looked at her closely.

"Whatever it is, you can tell me. I won't be angry with you." Lily felt a pang of…what was it? Well, a pang of an unidentified emotion. However, it was now or never.

"I…failed. I failed you. I failed myself. And I failed Angie." Harry looked concerned.

"Did something happen to her?" Lily waited about three seconds and burst into a torrent of tears. For some reason they came easier then she expected.

"I can't believe you-"

"Leave it, Ginny."

"But you-"

"Ginny!"

All the way to King's Cross Station, Ginny kept trying to tell Lily off for losing her kitten and Harry kept trying to stop her. "She's just about to leave us and we won't see her till Christmas. She already feels terrible about this, just let it go." Eventually, the journey subsided into uncomfortable silence. By now Lily had identified that emotion. Guilt. But it had to be done? Didn't it?

Reaching the station, Lily suddenly felt her big plans dissolve into smoke. Everyone was so much bigger than she was! Even the first-years! No. She couldn't think like that. About to board the train, she heard someone call her name. Her father was running toward her. "Did you really want to leave without saying goodbye?" Lily looked at her father and realised why she had drifted almost dreamlike towards the train. This was going to be painful.

She knew her father thought it was just goodbye for the term but she knew better. Things were never going to be the same between them. He may have understood her better than the rest of her family but he still had no idea as to her plans. Her big plans. However, if she was to fulfil her purpose in life then she had to make sacrifices. Lily turned and looked her father straight in the eye, refusing to allow any hint of sadness or regret mar her expression, "Goodbye, dad."

As the train pulled out of the station, Lily couldn't help but feel excited. This was it. This was the beginning. Now she just had to find a place to sit, a deceptively simple task. Every carriage was full of people that she'd either never met before or that she had no intention of joining (she absolutely refused to become the newest addition to the Potter/Weasley clan).

Just when she thought she'd have to spend the entire journey in the hallway, she found an empty carriage. Settling herself comfortably, she began to read. However, just a few minutes into her new textbook she heard a soft knocking. "Come in." She called clearly. But no one did. Irritated, she put her book down and went to open the door. Seeing Lucifer Malfoy in the doorway she felt a surge of relief, for an awful moment she thought it was James playing some sort of trick on her.

The little Malfoy was blushing heavily and looked thoroughly downcast. It was then Lily noticed that he was soaking wet. "What happened to you?" asked Lily, attempting to sound aloft and trying to conceal the concern that was threatening to leak into her voice. However, her eyes belied her. Lucifer muttered something inaudibly and Lily had to ask him to repeat himself several times before she could make out "Scorpius". Lily gave a humourless smile. She knew all about older siblings.

A few hours later and Lily and Lucifer were finally feeling comfortable enough to talk to each other. Whilst Lily was an introverted girl who had spent her life classifying people as trite and unworthy of her attention, Lucifer was a painfully shy boy who had grown up in the shadow of his older brother and had always been bullied and teased by his brother and his little mob.

"So, er, Lily… do you know what house you'll be in?" Lucifer asked, trying and failing to make it seem like a casual question of no real importance. Lily stared out the window in silence and after a while Lucifer gave up on waiting for a reply. Suddenly, the door was slammed open and a tall boy with pale blonde hair and pale blue eyes stormed into the room, "There you are, you little weed. Did I give you permission to run off? Did I?" Lucifer looked like he was going to cry. Scorpius made to grab his brother by the scruff of his neck but just as he was about to grab him he felt fangs pierce his hand.

Jumping away from his brother, Scorpius scanned the room for the source of his pain, his little gang quickly edging towards the carriage door. After a while, his eyes focused on Lily. "Who are you? What did you do to me? Tell me now!" Lily simply smiled a cold smile. It was time to unveil her secret weapon. "Why don't you meet our new friends, Omegan." She felt her insides quiver with joy as she watched unadulterated fear spread over the boys faces.

"You're…you're…" However, fear turned to panic as they saw the pure white snake emerge from behind the curtain, bearing its fangs ominously. "Ahhhhhhh!" Within seconds they had fled.

Turning to Lucifer, she felt her smile disappear. Tears were streaming down his face. He looked distraught. "What's the matter?" Didn't he understand? They were gone! He looked at her sadly, "They'll be back. And they'll punish me for this." Hearing this, fury coursed through Lily's veins. It burned her like fire and for a moment she was so angry that she couldn't speak. When she finally recovered the power of speech she was just about able to get out the word "never". Lucifer looked at her blankly, "Huh?"

Lily hands curled into fists so tight that blood began to run down her wrists as her nails dug into her palms. "I won't let them hurt you. I hate bullying and this stops now. No matter what house you get put in, I'll ask the sorting hat to put me there too. Omegan and I will keep you safe. I promise."

Lucifer looked at his hands, "You must think I'm pathetic." Lily shook her head vehemently and took his hands in hers, "You're not pathetic! You have to believe me! Your brother has been treating you unjustly your whole life. I don't know you well but I do know that you have limitless potential and you just need to believe in yourself to achieve it. We will stop him bullying you. I guarantee it."


End file.
